When Greece was peaceful, and the populace had no need of the divinity of his blessed presence, Ares found himself moody and sour. He'd walked through the streets of Athenia. He'd stopped in at Athena's temple and he had been disgusted to watch as the men and women of the city bowed down before her statue and worshiped at her feet. Athena. Did they not understand how incredibly frustrating it was for him? Had he not dedicated as much time for those stupid mortals? Hadn't he expended far more energy for them? Hadn't he taken special time out of his eternity to help them?



Why should his sister be the one to receive all the praise? Her helmet wasn't any more attractive than his own. She had an owl. He had dogs. She had a shield, he had a shield. She had a spear, he had a spear. The difference was that she was afraid to lose all control and he loved the feeling of chaos. These mortals didn't deserve his notice.



He'd gone back to Colchis and observed his own, true followers as they worshiped him but even the visitors there were a little slow. "We need a new war," he muttered to himself as he moved through Athena's temple, running the tip of his finger over the tabletops and along the walls. There were bits and baubles all over the place. Things he didn't care about. As a goddess of war, he felt she should have more weapons than she did.



There were enough littered around that he didn't feel the need to decimate her temple just to teach her a lesson, but she didn't have his absolute respect either. Too many books and scrolls. Stopping beside a bookshelf, he plucked one out and licked his thumb to turn the first few pages.



It was a bunch of algorithms. Mathematical equations. "Boring." He tossed the book over his shoulder and picked out another one. "Strategies for a successful war," he read aloud. That one seemed a little more promising. He let the book fall open to the middle but his eyes glazed over immediately. "Boring. No strategy needed. Just fighting," he said in a sing song voice and tossed that one too. It landed on the floor behind him with a hard plop.



The next few books he took out were also in the vein of boring, academic bull poop and he discarded them in the same careless manner that he'd done the rest of them. She was a goddess. If she wanted them in the bookcase, she could bend her divine ass over and pick them up herself.



Speaking of divine ass...He wandered over to the statue of herself that stood at the far end of the room and circled it. "Oh Athena..." he murmured to himself. "You need to get laid...being beautiful is such a waste if you're not going to use it." Grinning up at her visage, he gave her bottom a nice pat and then waved snarkily at her statue. "See you on the battlefield, sister."

And then he left.